Paula Kahumbu

She
explains that “conservationists do crucial work on a shoestring, cut
off from the rest of the world. They’re in remote, isolated places, some
even risking their lives, with no chance of getting on the
international radar screen. Meanwhile, millions of people who care about
the catastrophic loss of wildlife and habitats aren’t sure how to
help.”

Legendary conservationist Richard Leakey
saw the Internet as a way to connect individuals concerned about the
planets threatened flora and fauna with those working on the frontlines
to save it. Today his brainchild, WildlifeDirect, gives about 120
conservation projects an online platform to share day-by-day challenges
and victories via blogs, diaries, videos, photos, and podcasts. As
executive director of the effort (wildlifedirect.org)
Kahumbu has the vehicle she was looking for to bring conservation
stories out of the shadows and into the minds of people who want to
help.

Thanks to her efforts, people concerned
about wildlife and wild places can view problems in real time and track
the impact of their own contributions. They can spend lunch breaks
watching an endangered eagle whose eyesight they helped to restore, see
conservationists saving orphan orangutans in Indonesia, or follow Maasai
warriors protecting lions in Africa.

“Most
people can’t make enormous donations to help support these projects,”
Kahumbu acknowledges. “But if millions of people each contribute just
ten or twenty dollars, it adds up to really significant support.” The
site attracts thousands of visitors daily, with online donations going
directly to projects across Africa, Asia, and South America.
“Conservationists do difficult, dangerous fieldwork—not savvy
fundraising,” Kahumbu points out. “WildlifeDirect gives voice to their
most basic needs, from fuel for a motorbike to uniforms for park
rangers, things that are essential, but not expensive. It’s a
particularly powerful way to quickly leverage support when a crisis
occurs.”

One dramatic example of spotlighting a
crisis occurred when mountain gorillas were found slaughtered in Congo’s
war-torn wilderness. “Discovering carcasses that had been shot at point
blank range was extremely traumatic for park rangers who had monitored
the gorillas for years and knew their individual personalities, names,
and families,” Kahumbu recalls. “The stories and photos that rangers
posted were so emotional and compelling it immediately seized
international awareness and media attention. One curious thing about
Africa is that often people with the least formal education are the best
storytellers. Their powerful, on-the-ground accounts prompted an
outpouring of support and restored financial stability to the park.
Today, it’s re-opened to tourism, which is amazing since only a few
years ago it was a battlefield where not only people, but also gorillas,
lions, elephants, and hippopotamuses were being annihilated.”

Years
later, when post-election violence rocked the renowned Maasai Mara
preserve, WildlifeDirect exposed the crisis and used its own credibility
to garner government funding that allowed the park to survive the
perilous period.

The site can also bring a
unique big-picture perspective to otherwise fragmented efforts. When a
disturbing trend of predators dying from poison surfaced on blogs,
WildlifeDirect connected the dots to reveal the same chemical pesticide
was used to kill all of the animals. The team called a meeting with
bloggers and government officials, alerted the online audience,
galvanized organizations across Africa, and attracted international
media coverage. Public pressure on officials and producers ultimately
forced the manufacturer to withdraw the pesticide from Kenya.

Sometimes
the story of a single animal motivates global response. When Rosy, a
key breeding crowned eagle in Africa, grew blind and stopped mating, the
site published his plight. Enough money was raised to perform cataract
surgery, successfully replace his lenses, and enable breeding to resume.

The
site also transforms human lives. Kenya’s “Lion Guardians” battle the
unprecedented collapse of lion populations by convincing Maasai
warriors, who once hunted lions, to monitor them and educate communities
on ways to save livestock without killing big cats. One of the first
young men to join began posting stories, photos, and videos on
WildlifeDirect. He saved 50 lions in one year by raising just $18,000
through the site. His poignant descriptions became an international
sensation and caught the eye of Oxford University. He was offered a
scholarship, completed a degree, and has returned to lead anti-poaching
investigations in the field. “He’s the first person in his region to
achieve this level of education,” says Kahumbu. “He’s become a real
conservation hero thanks to opportunities inspired by his blog.”

Growing
up in Kenya, Kahumbu remembers asking her neighbor Richard Leakey to
tell her about animals she caught and brought to his door. “I always
hoped to find one he couldn’t identify, but of course that never
happened.” Years later she brings Leakey’s vision, and the work of
hundreds of other conservationists, to anyone with an Internet
connection. “We’ve just started a blog from a man who has quietly
labored in the wilderness for 16 years. William Kimosop persuaded
schoolchildren to monitor Kenya’s endangered kudu antelope, then worked
with communities to secure key migration and breeding areas. He’s
single-handedly responsible for tens of thousands of acres being set
aside to preserve kudu, crucial trails connecting habitats, and an
ancient trade route essential to local livelihoods. He achieved all that
on his own in the middle of nowhere; imagine what he’ll do with
worldwide support.”